Blade Child, Blood of Dragons
by Alexis Theory
Summary: She's mastered everything that has come at her. She has slain enemies and bartered with deities. Now if only Tahlith can manage to keep her companions from killing each other as she hunts down her true parents. Post-OC and Post-MotB. Minor AU.
1. Prelude

_**I do not own anything here except Tahlith (the PC) and the story idea. This fanfic takes place post-MoTB. Some events are minor-AU type things, but they are, for the most part, explained in the fanfic. Feel free to ask me questions.**_

_**Choices in games: In the OC, Bishop was not killed by the PC and Qara did a bunk merely because she hates Sand. The Construct was formed and the PC did not join the Neverwinter Nine. The PC joined the City Watch, not Moire's the PC rejected him. The PC joined the Crusade and had all the Mask Fragments, so Akachi was saved. Any other choices should become clear through the story. Feel free gang. Casavir did proclaim his love, but was rejected. In MotB, Okku joined the party, not One of Many. Gann confessed his love, but to ask questions if you want back story. **_

_**Let me also explain right now that, once you hit Chapter 1, you are going to realize that Georg, along with many other West Harbor citizens who should be dead, are alive. That's intentional; I wasn't going to make up all new inhabitants for West Harbor, so I 'salvaged' a few. Pretend they actually made it.**_

"Stillborn..." Shayla Farlong sighed, putting the dead tiefling child aside, covering it with a blanket. "I'm so sorry, Esmerelle."

Esmerelle lay on her bed, exhausted and silently crying. After months of secrecy about the child's origins, it had all acumulated to nothing.

"Don't cry, Esmerelle," An elvish woman of mixed blood reassured her. "Don't forget our deal. You will still have your child to raise." The elf had a hand on a basket beside her. Inside was a sleeping baby, one that couldn't have been more than a day old itself.

Shayla looked at the child in the basket. It was clear that the baby girl had been given a small amount of sedative in its last meal to keep it from waking at an unfortunate time. A small pair of horns protruded from the infant's forehead, just enough to remind Shayla of the slightly larger set that had been present on Esmerelle's dead baby. Repressing a shudder, Shayla turned to Esmerelle. "You don't have to do this. Maybe it was for the best that the child died; it would only have been a constant reminder of that devil... This child will only make it worse!"

Esmerelle shuddered a bit at the memory, but her reply was firm. "No, Shayla, it will make things better. If anything good can come of this, then all the better. The child needs a home." She sat up a bit. "Let me see her, Tinureth... please."

Tinureth, the elf woman, smiled sadly as she took the tiefling child out of the basket and handed her to Esmerelle. Esmerelle smiled as she held the infant closely. "What is her name?"

"Tahlith," Tinureth replied. "Tahlith Auvreaneldth."

"Auvreaneldth..." Shayla repeated as Esmerelle began cooing the name to the sleeping infant. "That isn't your last name."

"Nor is it the last name of her father, but it must pass as such." Tinureth stood, looking almost longingly at the child before turning away. "She'll wake within the hour. Shall I take the other with me?" She was referring to Esmerelle's dead child.

Esmerelle sighed. "Yes, I suppose." She longed for her real child to have survived, but she understood that it was better this way; raising 'twins' would have been more conspicuous.

Tinureth quickly gathered up the dead infant, blanket and all, and scooped it into the basket the other child had been brought in. "I shall give it a proper burial once I'm away. And Esmerelle?" She looked back at the woman one more time. "Thank you again for fostering m- Tahlith." The words caught in her throat, but she kept a straight face. Esmerelle nodded her understanding. Tinureth took one more look at the child in the woman's arms before turning away. There was a flash of red light, and she was gone.

That flash of light was enough to send poor Retta Starling scurrying away from the window sill she'd been hiding under, just outside the house. She'd heard every word of the conversation inside and, while she was not one to gossip, this was definitely one of the biggest things to have happened in West Harbor in years.

Retta told only two people her story: Georg and Lorne. Lorne was killed by Black Garius's hand, but not before he sent a letter to his own brother, Bevil, telling him every detail of his time in Luskan, why he had fought to kill Tahlith, and just what his mother saw that evening Tahlith was 'born'. Bevil didn't get the letter until he worked at Crossroads Keep, and by then he was unsure of what to make of the news. He never told Tahlith. Georg still lives, rebuilding West Harbor. He'd always thought that Retta's story was good, but never shared it with anyone else.


	2. Blazing Comet

Although the sky was clear, there was not enough light from the moon and stars to see by. It was only his elven heritage that allowed Daeghun to find Georg in the darkness. Georg gave a small start as his human eyes finally spotted Daeghun, but he quickly recovered. "Ah, Daeghun. Miserable night, huh? There's really no point to standing watch when I can't see anything coming, don't you think?"

Daeghun's reply was monotone. "So long as undead continue to roam the Mere, someone has to be ready to raise the alarm."

Georg sighed. "You're right, of course. Speaking of roaming the Mere, you're leaving again tomorrow, aren't you?"

Daeghun nodded sadly. "She's out there, Georg. I'll always keep searching, no matter how long it takes."

There was a silence between them as the two stared out at the Mere. Georg ended up breaking the silence. "Is it just me, or is it getting lighter out here?"

Daeghun signaled for him to be quiet. A sound, like an all too familiar laugh, was playing on the wind. Turning, the ranger's eyes went wide. Georg turned to see what was wrong. "What in Chauntea's name..."

A comet, blazing brightly and hurtling towards the forests near West Harbor, was rapidly descending. Daeghun just kept staring at the comet, still able to hear the laughter. "It can't be..."

Georg didn't catch the rest of Daeghun's muttering as the hurried off to gather some supplies. The night was still young and what was looking to be a grand adventure was just beginning.

-Break-

The comet crashed noisily into the Mere, sending up a cloud of dust as it hit a piece of relatively solid ground. As the dust cleared, the laughing got louder. An oddball group was scattered about the crater in various states of consciousness. In the center, amid the debris, lay Tahlith Auvreaneldth, former Kalach-cha, former spirit eater, Lady of Crossroad Keep, hero and knight of Neverwinter, and participant in the Third Crusade. She was laughing, unable to contain her relief and elation. ''We did it, guys!'' She announced to the group, though it was already obvious to them. ''We made it back! We're home.''

-Break-

Daeghun dashed through the murky, familiar paths of the Mere, searching for where the comet had crash landed. Georg was hurrying to keep up as best he could. Why Daeghun had felt the need to bring Georg along was beyond the human, but follow he did. As they ran, Georg began to worry about Daeghun; the ranger had muttered numerous times about laughter and the comet. This was definitely not the time for the elf to finally lose it.

When Georg finally caught up, it was only because they had reached their apparent destination. Bits of rock were everywhere, having crashed into trees and swamp water. Daeghun was examining the dirt around the crater carefully. "A bear... Humans... A wolf..." Georg listened to Daeghun's muttering carefully, curious as to why the ranger was searching for tracks. When Daeghun reached the center of the crater, he stood up, a dangerous look in his eye. "It's her."

"What… you mean Tahlith?" Georg asked, clueing in to the subject of the pronoun immediately. "No offence, Daeghun, but are you sure? Why in the Nine Hells would Tahlith be here now, of all times? Sure, a comet just crashed here, and that's something pretty spectacular, but if Tahlith was around, don't you think she'd have come to the village by now, or have crossed paths with us on our way here? "

Daeghun shook his head as he followed a set of tracks around the crater. "She came with the comet; don't ask me how. I would recognize the way she walks anywhere. Look." Daeghun pointed at the ground. To Georg, the confused tracks meant nothing, but Daeghun was determined. "Here she changed her gait she from a relaxed pace to a more battle-ready one. Only a shadowdancer or a rogue would walk like this into a battle, and even then Tahlith's tracks have always been unique."

Georg sighed, "Alright, but why didn't she come towards West Harbor? She knows the Mere as well as any ranger or druid would…"

"Not anymore…" Daeghun sounded almost sad as he looked around the area. "The Mere has changed. Last Tahlith knew, West Harbor was destroyed and left to be swallowed by the corrupted Mere. There's little chance she'd know where she was." Daeghun motioned for Georg to follow. "Come. She went this way, and in a hurry. The others followed her."

-Break-

"Little one, why do we run if they are friends?" Tahlith kept up her fast pace as Okku questioned her. She and her companions were dashing through the swampy land at a speed that some of them had trouble maintaining.

Looking over at the bear god, Tahlith grinned. "Daeghun, my foster father, would not ask questions before shooting certain members of our party. We need a place to regroup, reequip, and plan before he reaches us. Besides…" Tahlith smiled as she recognized a set of ruins up ahead. "I want to see whether I can actually surprise him for once."

-Break-

"Stop." Georg almost ran into Daeghun as the elf stopped suddenly.

"What's wrong?" The fighter asked, his hand drifting to his sword.

Daeghun frowned. "I'm not sure." _Why did she come here?_ Before him were two ruins. One he knew all too well to be where he had hid his sliver shard, all too long ago. The lizardlings had never returned after the King of Shadows's defeat, so the ruins were empty now. To the right of it, a short ways away, was the building Elanee had pointed out to him once as the location of one of the Statues of Purification, as well as a portal that could occasionally be opened. _Is she trying to get through the portal? _He pondered.

Motioning for Georg to stay put, Daeghun carefully followed the tracks to, surprisingly, the lizardling hideout. Daeghun was about to open the door when he heard a rustling noise from the bushes nearby. Whirling around, Daeghun drew his bow and knocked an arrow all in one smooth motion, immediately suspecting a trap.

Out of the bushes came the strangest looking bear that Daeghun had ever seen. Its fur was primarily blue, turning white as it spiked up on its back like strange flames, and shifting red around its neck at parts and around his paws. It was as tall as an adult human, and it was staring straight at Daeghun. Georg drew his sword and looked ready to defend when, suddenly, the bear spoke. "Call off your friend, ranger. I mean neither you no harm… yet."

Daeghun glanced over at Georg and gave him a short nod. Georg relaxed his stance, and Daeghun lowered his bow. This seemed enough for the bear, for it continued. "You have been following us. Why?"

"I seek my daughter." Daeghun announced clearly. A small noise, like the faintest of gasps, reached his ears. Is she here? Why does she not show herself? To the bear, he asked, "Have you seen her?"

The bear made a grumbling noise akin to laughter. "I have seen many females before, and even traveled with them, but I have never traveled with a woman of elf kin."

"She's not an elf," Daeghun replied, "nor is she truly my daughter. Her name is Tahlith Auvreaneldth, a tiefling and a bard, and I have reason to believe she is in this area."

The bear turned his head to the side, as if thinking. "What is your name?"

"Daeghun Farlong, foster father of Tahlith." He replied. "Please, if you have had any news…"

A voice rang out through the clearing, seemingly from all directions. "Okku, you've done marvelously. Thank you."

"Tahlith…" Daeghun's voice was almost inaudible. He scanned the clearing, desperate to see where the source of the voice was.

"Right here, father." Daeghun turned to see a figure in dark, padded armor step out of the shadows of the second building. At her waist was a sheathed sword with a very familiar looking hilt; attached to her wrist was a beaten up, small wooden shield with numerous painted symbols on it. Her step was casual, yet hinted that she could pounce like a cat at any time. Her pale skin and icy blue eyes contrasted her dark red hair in an almost eerie way. Despite the few new scars barely visible as they peeked out around her armor, Tahlith could have stepped straight out of Daeghun's memory. Dropping his bow, Daeghun crossed the distance between them in a few short steps and embraced his foster daughter.

Tahlith grinned widely as she hugged him back. "Hey, dad. Guess where I've been."


	3. Home Town

It all seemed horribly surreal to Georg. Daeghun was standing there hugging his foster daughter, murmuring something in elvish to her which she was smiling about. The talking bear was still watching, clearly looking amused, which was a weird expression for a bear.

Georg cleared his throat and walked over to Tahlith and Daeghun. "I see you're still using that old shield I gave you."

Tahlith released Daeghun, who did the same reluctantly, and quickly hugged Georg. "Of course! Do you know how often this shield has saved me? Mind you, I made some minor upgrades, so it isn't exactly the same..." Tahlith trailed off as she caught the bear's eye. "Oh, how rude of me. Everyone, this is Okku, the bear god. Okku, I'd like you to meet Daeghun, my father, and Georg, West Harbor's militia leader."

Okku nodded. "Your friends are good ones, little one. However, you have other friends..." He hinted.

"Oops! I almost forgot the others." Tahlith grabbed Daeghun's hand. "Come on! I want you to meet my new friends." The tiefling girl dragged the ranger into the lizardling ruins eagerly, with Georg and Okku following.

Inside the first "room" were two people: a woman with a shaved head and red robes, and a blue-skinned, blue-haired man. Both looked up when Tahlith entered. "Dad, this is Safira and Gannayev-of-Dreams. You two, this is my foster father... Oh, and Georg." She added as the militia leader caught up.

"Pleased to meet you," Safira said.

Gann shook Daeghun's hand. "So you're Tahl's dad, huh? Interesting."

Daeghun nodded in recognition of Gann's words, but already he was distracted by the fact that Tahlith was rapidly jabbering away with Safira in a language he did not recognize. Gann began commenting in as well. Georg chuckled and nudged Daeghun. "I always knew Tahlith was good with languages, but I haven't the faintest idea of what they are saying."

"They're communicating in a combination of Rashemi and Mulhorandi." Okku provided. "They each know enough to get their meanings across. Still," Okku continued with a small grin, "half of what gets said is one translating for another."

"You can understand them?" Georg asked.

"I am from Rashemen, am I not? I understand them well enough," Okku provided. "They're arguing now about what their next move should be."

A loud shriek came echoing through the ruins. Tahlith, Gann, and Safira all immediately stopped arguing and looked down the hallway. "Damn it. If Bishop's scaring Shandra again..." Tahlith raced down the hallway.

Daeghun's eyes narrowed. _Bishop? That backstabbing bastard. What would he be doing here?_ Daeghun raced after Tahlith, worried for her safety and bent on retribution.

Tahlith was not at all happy to discover that the ruins were, contrary to initial assessment, inhabited by unfriendly creatures. She and the others hurried into the room where Daeghun had hidden his silver shard and found a group of people fighting hordes of beetles and spiders. Tahlith let out a battle cry and immediately launched herself into the fray. Daeghun hung back and fired arrows at the insects, while Okku, Safira, Gann, and Georg all rushed in to help.

It didn't take long for the battle to be over, what with beetles not being the most difficult of opponents. Tahlith quickly sheathed her sword before anyone could get a good look at it. She turned to see that Daeghun had two of her friends cornered with an arrow pointed at them. "Dad, what are you doing?" She asked in exasperation.

"The better question is what are you doing with two killers and backstabbers accompanying you." Daeghun eyed the two with contempt.

Tahlith sighed. "Well, this isn't going according to plan." She stepped between Daeghun and her two companions. "I rescued them, father, and they had the option of joining me."

"Excuse me," Georg interjected, "but what's going on here?"

Tahlith laughed. "Oh, that's right. You didn't get properly introduced to my friends before I left." She motioned to the two men behind her. "These are Bishop, a ranger, and Ammon Jerro, a warlock." She then motioned to a man and a woman standing off to the side. "And these are Casavir, a paladin of Tyr, and Shandra Jerro, a fighter."

Bishop cleared his throat to get Tahlith's attention. "You know, we wouldn't be having this problem if we'd stuck to _my_ plan."

"Your plan?" Gann laughed. "Your plan involved about a month of hiking through this blasted swamp. We're sticking with Tahlith on this one."

Shandra nodded. "Let's get out of here so we can take baths and sleep in actual beds, can we?"

Tahlith put a hand on Daeghun's shoulder. "Please, dad, I'll explain later. Trust me."

Something funny happened to Daeghun when Tahlith said this; she could tell. His eyes went from glaring to surprised, and straight to their normal calm over the course of about two seconds. The elf relaxed his bow. "Of course." His voice sounded funny to Tahlith. "I trust you."

"Thank goodness." Shandra sighed. "Now let's get moving."

"Agreed." Casavir said. "Especially because I think I hear more insects coming."

This, of course, got everyone moving. Bishop, Daeghun noted, stayed close to Tahlith as she and the elf ranger led the way back out of the ruins. Then again, though, so did the bear.

-Break-

Meanwhile, deep under the surface of Faerun…

"Eilistraee, vel'klar zhah il?" The drow woman muttered, causing the slightly younger woman nearby to look sadly at her leader. Nathyrra knew that the Seer had never given up on the woman who had slain the Valsharess for them. Even now, over 20 years since they'd last head from her, the Seer still searched through her visions of some sign of the sorceress, dead or alive. Neither, though, had appeared.

"Nathyrra…" The drow assassin looked up to see Imloth coming into the room. In his hand he held a letter, but since he did not immediately present it, it was most likely for the Seer. "I was wondering where you were."

Nathyrra smiled at the drow male. Over the years, she'd become rather fond of Imloth, one of the few who had survived Mephistopheles' rampage by fleeing with the Seer. Lith My'athar was quiet nowadays, and it was easy for the two of them to get time alone to chat. "I was going to talk to the Seer, but…" Nathyrra motioned to the Seer's trance-like state, suggesting that she did not dare wake the woman up.

Imloth listened for a moment to the continued mutterings of the Seer. "She's still searching for our Xukuth Lac'nala?" He guessed, using the drow nickname for their mutual friend.

Nathyrra nodded and sighed, sitting down on one of the stairs near the Seer's chair. "I wish she had told us where she was going. There was so much left to say…"

Sitting down next to her, Imloth comforted her. "She knew what she was doing. Xukuth Lac'nala always kept secrets. You remember how she only came with one sword?"

Nathyrra looked up at him. "Of course I remember." Caniam Carnax, the sword that the sorceress had left behind in the Seer's care. "And Nameless Light was already missing. I wonder what happened to it. Xukuth Lac'nala loved those swords."

Before Imloth could offer any speculation, the Seer stirred. Imloth and Nathyrra immediately stood as the drow woman turned to look at them. "Anything?" Nathyrra asked hopefully.

"Still no sign of her," The Seer replied, knowing immediately what the question was about.

Imloth held out a letter to the Seer. "This came in today by caravan." Lately, groups of adventurers and drow had been making regular trips between Waterdeep and Lith My'athar. Mail was brought between the cities like any normal trade route. The Seer opened it and read it carefully. "It's from our temple on the surface." She announced when she was finished. "Apparently they have received some strange visions of things happening in the vicinity of Neverwinter..."

Nathyrra's heart lept, the idea that it was a sign of her friend filling her. Xukuth Lac'nala had been to Neverwinter before…

"I need to be alone for a while." The Seer suddenly told them and headed up towards her room. Imloth and Nathyrra shared looks of worry, but did not question their leader further.

Once she was in her room, the Seer sighed. The message from the surface… the mangled visions… and a figure who, until recently, she had thought to be Valen, constantly playing a major role in her visions. The Seer glanced over at the sword hanging on her bedroom wall. _Xukuth Lac'nala, what legacy did you leave?_

-Break-

Tahlith looked down at the rebuilt West Harbor in amazement. "It's perfect..." she finally murmured.

Georg overheard her and laughed. "It isn't exactly perfect, but it's home. It looks like those men alerted before we left spread the news."

It was true; people were peering out of windows and front doors to get a better look at them. Tahlith looked over at Okku. "Would you like to take the long way around and meet us at the house, or should we get the oggling over with now?"

The bear nudged her with his nose. "I will stay. Courage, little one." He added, noting the nervousness filling the tiefling.

"Yeah, courage." She repeated, her hand subconsciously going up to the necklace she wore. It was old, the one Lord Nasher had sent to her after having beaten Lorne. She didn't need its enchantment so much anymore; it was the memories Tahlith treasured it for. It gave her comfort to feel the familiar metal in her hand. Taking a deep breath, Tahlith walked forward into the village.

People staring was nothing new to Tahlith, nor was their whispering. She managed to make it to the bridge without being outright attacked or mobbed, so Tahlith considered it a success. She led the way to the small house, which looked nearly the same as ever even after having been rebuilt. Tahlith put her hand on the wall of the house and smiled. "I almost never expected to see this place again."

A small smile leaked out to Daeghun's face as he walked forward to open the door. "Tahlith, I do not think all your friends are going to be able to sleep comfortably in our small house."

Not missing the 'our' in Daeghun's statement, Tahlith grinned. "Okku prefers sleeping outside, Shandra and Safira can share my room with me, and I'm sure the boys wouldn't mind sleeping on the floor downstairs till we manage better arrangements for them." She looked at her friends. "Right, guys?"

After much nodding and a bit of grumbling, Daeghun led them inside, minus Okku, who curled up near a window to watch inside. Tahlith looked around in awe at how well Daeghun had put the place back together. She ended up smiling widely at her foster father while her friends looked around nervously. "You've really out done yourself, father. Everything's like I remember it."

"I wasn't trying for too much of a change." He motioned upstairs. "I'm not sure if I rebuilt your room in complete accuracy, but..." The rest of his sentance was cut off as Tahlith grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him upstairs with her.

Georg stopped Shandra, who tried to follow them. "Let them have their moment alone. Daeghun's been in a right frenzy to find Tahlith since she went missing, and now she's practically dropped into his lap unannounced." Realizing that everyone in the room was looking at him, Georg grinned. "So, anyone want a drink? I happen to know where Daeghun stashed a supply of old Harvest Mead..."


	4. Storytime

The room might as well have been copied directly out of Tahlith's memories. The bed... her dresser... the desk was clean, for once, minus the layer of dust, but other than that it was the same. After staring at the room for several moments, Tahlith turned and hugged Daeghun, who had stayed in the doorway. "Thanks." Daeghun hugged her back, and they stayed like that for several long minutes, just revelling in each other's presence.

"Where were you, Tahlith?" Daeghun finally asked. "I searched everywhere."

Tahlith released him from the hug and sat down on her bed. "It's not a simple story, but if you are willing to listen, I will tell it."

And so Tahlith began. With Daeghun sitting on a stool near her desk, and she sitting curled up on her bed, Tahlith told him of Black Garius and how Neeshka had been captured as soon as they arrived in the ruins of Illefarn. She relayed every detail of her confrontation of Bishop, who had walked away a free man before the fighting started. Her tale quickly moved on to Neeshka's return and Qara's betrayal, all to avoid being on the same side as Sand. Blow by blow, Tahlith described the defeats of Qara, Black Garius, and the King of Shadows.

She did not end there, though. Without halting in the slightest, Tahlith carried on to describe what she had experienced after the battle, from the burning of the shard in her chest to the crashing boulders around her. "Only two things were clear in my vision right before I passed out," Tahlith told Daeghun, "and those were the faces of Ammon Jerro and Bishop, who, for some reason, returned to me at the end there. The next thing I knew, I was face-down on the ground with the shard gone, along with the Sword of Gith."

Her story rolled onwards, just like her journey had with Safira at her side, past an enraged Okku, into Mulsantir, and through hordes of hostile Red Wizards to reach the Veil. After a brief explanation of the Plane of Shadows, Tahlith told Daeghun of her time there. Gann and Kaelyn soon made their entrances into the story, as did Okku after Tahlith beat down the hunger within herself.

The group's return to the Veil, Tahlith revealed, turned up information on her kidnapping to Rashemen, as well as a new quest. It was hard not to be absorbed into the story as the new party struggled to reach the Sleepers, with a brief side trip through the land of dreams to learn of Bishop's fate on the Wall of the Faithless, only to be told to go to the Academy. There, she described, had Ammon Jerro been rescued and the fates of her other companions learned.

Daeghun by this point was having a hard time controlling his emotions, but upon learning that Tahlith had met with Myrkul, the elf was more than flabbergasted. The amazement did not cease as Tahlith relayed the tale of Akachi and the Founder, which lead into the group's discovering that Safira was a part of the latter person just as much as Tahlith had become a part of the first.

"It was at this point that the Founder returned to me the Sword of Gith," Tahlith said. In one smooth motion she drew her sword to show to Daeghun. No longer were tiny pieces missing; the blade was as whole as it had ever been. Daeghun noted the way Tahlith's touch alone on the hilt set the blade shining even brighter. Tahlith looked at it almost sadly. "I kinda liked it better broken..."

After that brief interlude, Tahlith continued to describe her adventures on the Fugue Plane. Following her path in the Third Crusade, the story soon reached its climax when Tahlith got to meet with Kelemvor. She described how she had had to free her soul, only to be thrown into a dream version of Crossroad Keep to defend her friends. From there, it was a similar deal in a version of West Harbor before she got the Mask of the Betrayer rebuilt.

Finally, Tahlith finished her tale with how she had beaten the Faceless Man and gotten rid of her curse by use of the Mask. The two of them sat there for a while in silence. Tahlith watched Daeghun's face for any sign of emotion, positive or negative. "Well?"

The elf's face remained neutral. "You still haven't said how or why those two are in your company, nor how the other two, who should be dead, aren't."

"Oh, that's the fun part," Tahlith said with a grin. "For that Kelemvor and I made a deal."

_It was right as Kelemvor was telling me that I was free to go that it hit me: I could go home! Finally, after all that time being trapped and bound by other people's actions, I could do whatever I wanted. But, as I marveled in my freedom, I thought of all that had happened to me and all I had lost. Suddenly I missed my friends. Sure, I knew Ammon Jerro was awaiting me outside the City for our return to Faerun, but images of Bishop on the Wall still haunted my mind._

_"Kelemvor," I interrupted, "can I ask you for a favor?"_

_He seemed to be both curious and amused by my question. "Ask what you will."_

_I told him of Bishop, of how, despite the man's lack of faith, he still deserved, in my eyes, another chance. I described everything I knew about Bishop to Kelemvor and, when I was done, I asked him for Bishop to be released from the Wall and returned to life with me._

_The god looked at me for a long while, and seemed to ponder the matter at hand. Eventually, he said, "Bishop is one of the faithless. Naturally, it takes the power of a god or goddess to bring a man back to life, but to return a faithless to life would upset the balances of good and evil, law and order. Such an action requires more than one diety."_

"_Kelemvor, please…" I was about ready to do anything at this point. _

_Kelemvor thought for a minute. "Even after ridding yourself of the curse, you are so much like Akachi. He too wanted to free his love, causing the start of the very curse you just ended. Very well, to ensure that you do not get the foolish idea in your head of following Akachi's actions, I will see what I can do."_

_We had to spend the night outside the city walls, but at least we had Ammon Jerro and Kaelyn's friends to keep us company as we celebrated my victory against the Faceless Man. Ammon obviously called me several different kinds of idiot, not all in Common. My fellow Crusaders, however, found my quest admirable and promptly gave me all kinds of encouragement. It wasn't long, however, before I grew tired of their company. Okku, loyal as ever, accompanied me to sit at the edge of the camp. Together we sat late into the night, neither of us able to sleep. For some time I prayed to Lliira, sending prayers to Tyr and Waukeen as well out of desperation. At one point, I brought up a question to Okku. "You're a god, Okku. Do you think I have a chance in helping Bishop?"_

_"I do not know, little one." He admitted. "However, if my opinion is asked, I will vouch for your friend, even if I worry for your safety with a man who betrayed you."_

_"He's a good person deep down, Okku," I told him, "He just does what he thinks is best, regardless of popular opinion."_

_We sat in silence for a minute or two, with me still leaning against him. It surprised me a bit when Okku suddenly shifted behind me. I looked at him out of curiosity. "What's wrong, Okku?"_

_"Nothing,'' He said in a way that I decided not to argue with. A moment more passed before he spoke again. "You need to sleep, little one."_

_"I'm not sure if I can," I told him honestly. "I can't stop worrying about Bishop.''_

_Okku made some sort of a noise with his throat, like one an older bear might make to a cub out of impatience. Casually, he leaned his head around and tapped mine with his nose. "Sleep."_

_I still don't know quite what he did, but the next thing I knew I was dreaming. Images of everything that had happened to me since that evening West Harbor was attacked began flowing through my mind. The difference was that, this time, certain people stood out as I met them. Shandra Jerro burned a clear yellow in my mind's eye. Qara seemed to be covered in a red haze. Casavir's aura was a brilliant blue, while Bishop, the man I was seeking to rescue, turned purple as soon as he was told by Duncan to help rescue Shandra. None of the others, as much as I enjoyed reliving my memories of, burned with such an aura as those four. It came to me as soon as Shandra died; the ones with auras were the ones who had not survived._

_When my dream finally ended, I awoke to find Gann and Safira crowded around me where I was curled up next to Okku. Gann was looking at me curiously, while Safira just looked nervous. As I got myself a quick breakfast they told me the news: a messenger from Kelemvor had come by early in the morning to say that I was to meet Kelemvor by the City gates around noontime. We spent the morning packing, and then had a quick lunch before I hurried off to meet with Kelemvor._

_The death god was standing just inside the gates, and said nothing to me when I got there, only motioning for me to follow. I obediently did, anxious to see what news he had for me. Kelemvor led me to an unmarked building and ushered me inside._

_Inside was a small room with a door leading further inside. I watched as Kelemvor closed and locked the door behind him, then moved so he was standing between me and the other door_

_"There is a way for the balance to be kept." He suddenly announced. "It will not be easy, for it will no doubt make your journey home harder, yet I have a feeling you will not be entirely opposed to the idea."_

_"What is it?" I asked impatiently._

_Kelemvor waited a moment before answering. "To maintain the balance of alignment, I have solicited the aid of three other deities, each with their own people they want resurrected. If you wish to have Bishop leave this realm with you, you will have to reawaken the others as well."_

_Of course, the curiosity who those other three people were hit me first. After that, I began thinking more logically. Would they want to follow me? What would my current companions think? I eventually stopped pondering and asked, "Can I see these people?"_

_Kelemvor nodded. "In a moment, you may. You should also know, though, that a deity had to be found to sponsor Bishop in this. Otherwise he would just end up falling down the same path as before."_

_"Who sponsored him?'' I asked, hoping to the high heavens it wasn't anyone awful._

_Kelemvor smiled. "I shall let Bishop tell you that himself." The god of the dead motioned to the door. "Go ahead."_

_Excited, I burst through the door to find four people, all in different corners of the room, looking at each other in confusion. "Wha-?" I cried. To my surprise, not only was Bishop there, but Casavir, Qara, and even Shandra! Of course, they all looked at me immediately, with expectant looks on their faces._

"_Tahlith! What's going on here?" Shandra asked, looking horribly confused. It was only natural for her to be the most confused, having missed a third of our group's adventures._

_My eyes locked onto Bishop's as I scanned around the room. A look of understanding and questioning was on his face; he obviously had some inkling of what was happening to him. A streak of the courage I had once possessed as the Knight-Captain of Crossroad Keep stole through me. I took a deep breath and smiled at Shandra. "To be perfectly honest, Shandra, I am apparently getting a four-for-one deal on resurrecting companions today." I turned to Kelemvor, "Lucky me. You gave me the impression that I was going to be ending up with a bunch of people I'd hate."_

_Kelemvor stepped into the room. Qara immediately scoffed, "Who's this?"_

_Casavir looked a bit nervous. "I would not be so flippant in your wording, Qara. It appears that Tahlith has things under control here."_

"_Like usual…" Bishop muttered._

_Kelemvor addressed the room. "I am Kelemvor, Lord of the Dead. Your friend here has requested that I resurrect the soul of her former companion, Bishop. In order to maintain the balance, each of you has been nominated by your respective deities to be resurrected as well."_

_Three respective voices yelled out simultaneously. "WHHAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTT??"_

_Trying to be casual about their clear disdain for the idea, I turned to Bishop. "Nice to see you not covered in Wall gunk, Bishop."_

"_Yeah, well…" He seemed to be having trouble with coming up with sarcastic remarks, for once. I took it as a sign that he was surprised I was going out of my way for him. "I don't see why you're so happy about all this. Sure you're getting your farm-girl and the human shield back, but in case you haven't noticed, me and 'Smokey' over there aren't exactly welcome."_

"_Oh sure, point me out, Wolf-boy." Qara interjected. "You betrayed Tahlith outright. I did it just to get a clear shot at the hedge wizard." She suddenly looked at me. "He's not here, is he?"_

_I laughed. "I'm assuming he's still back at Neverwinter somewhere. Don't worry, though; I found a replacement for him quickly enough. How do you feel about Red Wizards who defy their own group's typical demeanor?"_

_Qara seemed to ponder this particular description. Shandra was looking even more confused. "Wait… so… what happened?"_

"_Suffice it to say that those two betrayed us in the final battle." Casavir told her._

"_I'll explain later, Shandra. It's not as bad as it sounds." Turning to Kelemvor, I grinned. "It's a deal, Kelemvor, and thank you."_

_Another round of disbelieving yelling ensued, but I eventually got them outside and into the City. Kelemvor turned to me then. "I will give you until this evening to pack; then, I shall send you and anyone who wants to go with you home."_

_I nodded and thanked him again before leading the others towards the city gates. On the way, Casavir was filling in Shandra as much as he could on everything that had happened. Qara was silent, watching me like she expected me to yell at her. Ignoring her for now, I nudged Bishop, "See? This isn't so bad."_

_He scoffed, "We'll see."_

_I laughed again, then asked, "By the way, what deity was crazy enough to sponsor you in all this?"_

_Bishop looked disdainfully towards the City gates, which we were reaching. I could see Safira, Gann, Kaelyn, and Okku waiting there for me. Bishop nodded towards them. "You can thank your furry companion for that."_

_I stopped in my tracks and stared at Bishop in disbelief. Suddenly my astonishment turned to amusement and then to excitement. I rushed out of the gates and launched myself onto Okku for a massive hug. "Okku, you rock!"_

_The bear grumbled appreciatively. "You're welcome, little one."_

_Gann nudged my shoulder. "Hey, I thought you were just getting one person. They seem to have multiplied."_

_Laughing like I hadn't for months, I got up and introduced everyone to each other, explaining what had happened with Kelemvor. Suddenly, I realized what was missing. "Kaelyn, where's Ammon?" I asked quietly._

"_Back at camp, why?" _

_I didn't answer, leaping forward to grab Shandra's arm and pull her after me as I ran back towards camp. "AAAAMMMMOOOONNNN!! I have a surprise for YOOOOOOUUUU!!"_

Tahlith paused for a minute before continuing. "It took everyone a bit to get used to each other as we got ready to go. Ammon was... unusually grateful when I brought Shandra to him, though there were some awkward moments between them. Casavir seemed unsure of whom to be more wary of: Ammon or Bishop. Okku was watching Bishop closely enough, though, that Casavir was able to focus on Ammon, which was a relief because Gann was already stalking me for my 'protection'." She grinned. "Qara and Kaelyn surprisingly got along well. Later, when Kelemvor came by to send us home, Qara announced she wanted to stay behind with Kaelyn to fight in the Crusades. Of course, Kaelyn accepted Qara with open arms. We said our goodbyes, and Kelemvor sent the rest of us here." Tahlith smiled at Daeghun. "That's about it."

Daeghun sat there for a moment, looking at Tahlith and taking in all that he had just heard. Finally, he said, "Your choices were obviously your own. I cannot pretend to know what I would have done in that situation, nor would I know what a better choice would have been. I will, however, commend you on your bravery and ingenuity..."

Tahlith's half-restrained snicker caught Daeghun off-guard, but he waited politely for her to finish. "Sorry," Tahlith said, still grinning. "I just know of no one else who can be as emotionless in a rant as you can be."

Daeghun's face at this remark caused Tahlith to burst out laughing again. It was going to be a while before either of them finished the discussion.

Break

Georg, meanwhile, was doing his best to keep the rest of Tahlith's companions entertained. Bishop had drunk his mead and left to 'check on Karnwyr outside.' He had yet to return. This had immediately taken the tension in the room down a notch, but Ammon Jerro still had Casavir on edge, even though the warlock was merely sitting in a corner, staring at the floor, and Shandra was pestering Casavir with questions. This left Gann and Safira to listen to Georg's tales of Tahlith and West Harbor. "It used to be," Georg said at one point, "That you wouldn't see Tahlith for days at a time; she was so often about the Mere. Everyone in the village thought we had another ranger on our hands, or possibly even a druid." Georg took a sip of his mead. "She sure did surprise us, though, when she began to show signs of arcane magic. The day we realized she was a bard was the same day she ended up calming down one of the Starlings' cows when it was in a rage. Even Daeghun had been having problems with it, but Tahlith just stood there on the bottom rail of the fence and sang to it. It calmed down soon enough. After that, Tarmas tried to teach her how to use more magic. More than once he got upset with her for whistling a tune under her breath while he was in the middle of a rant. There was no way to keep a tune off her lips."

"It seems that she has grown out of that particular habit," Safira informed him sadly. "When we were traveling, Tahlith seemed to focus more on her shadow-dancing than her singing."

"A pity," Georg agreed. "I hope she'll start singing again. It'd be a waste for her to abandon it completely." Bishop reentered the room, but other than a small glance from Casavir, he was ignored.

Gann drained the last of his mead. "So, if Daeghun is just Tahlith's foster-father, then who were her parents?"

Immediately, Ammon Jerro looked up from the floor he had been studying so intently; Casavir and Shandra stopped talking to pay attention. Even Bishop, who had been in the process of pouring himself some more mead, stopped to listen. Georg looked around at all of them. "I take it this is a topic of interest, then?"

There was a mumbling of affirmations and numerous heads nodded. Georg sighed. "To be honest, Daeghun knows more than I do, but I've heard a few rumors and know a few things. Tahlith's mom was a friend of Daeghun and his wife, Shayla. They all went on some sort of adventure for a short while, and it was Esmerelle who continued on long after Daeghun and Shayla stopped. For a long time Esmerelle slipped from their minds, but one night she came back, with a strange, cloaked woman in tow. It turned out Esmerelle was pregnant. The stranger left before the morning was gone, without more than a few words to the rest of us in the village. Tahlith was born here in Daeghun's house, with Shayla here to help Esmerelle."

Georg paused for a moment, trying to think of how to put the next part. He glanced at the stairs before continuing in a hushed tone. "There is a rumor, though, about the stranger. Retta Starling went by the house to see if Shayla and Esmerelle needed help, only to hear three people talking inside the house. The first two were Shayla and Esmerelle, as expected, but the third voice was that of a stranger. Retta swore it was the same woman who had dropped Esmerelle off months before. They were talking about two children, one was dead and the other merely asleep. Retta wouldn't tell me exactly what was said, but insisted that I keep an eye out for the woman all the same. Esmerelle and Shayla presented the baby girl to the village later. We were all surprised that Esmerelle, a human, picked an elf name for her child, and such a militaristic one as well. It's almost as if she'd known what was to happen to Tahlith… and the surname Esmerelle told us Tahlith was to be given was no less cryptic."

"What does her name mean?" Shandra asked.

Georg smiled the way he always did when giving away the climax of the story to his audience. "It means 'Blade Child, Blood of Dragons.' "


	5. Songs and Memories

The next morning, Bishop woke up early. He snuck outside to try to find Karnwyr again. The wolf had slept outside with Okku, saying that the bear was much better company than a hagspawn, a paladin, and a warlock. Bishop couldn't agree more, but had slept inside anyway.

Okku and Karnwyr were already awake when Bishop reached the small shed they had slept in. It was Daeghun's toolshed, which looked like it badly needed repairs. The inside was sparsely populated by tools, but there was plenty of room for a bear and a wolf to squeeze into. Okku looked up when Bishop opened the door. "Good morning, young one. Is all well?"

"Yeah, whatever," Bishop answered, sitting down against the wall.

Karnwyr greeted the man eagerly. _Pup brings food?_

"Not yet. I'll get you something later, though you could always hunt in the swamp," Bishop answered.

_Swamp smelly, ruins tracking._ Karnwyr informed him.

Bishop chuckled. Okku nudged him with his nose. "Is Tahlith okay?"

"She came down briefly last night from talking to her father. She seemed just fine. Exuberant, actually," Bishop responded.

Okku nodded. "Anything interesting happen last night?"

"We learned a bit about her past from Georg. Not much new information there, but enough that it got everyone's attention." Bishop quickly retold the story to Okku, including the meaning of Tahlith's name.

"Intriguing," Okku admitted, "but that is her past. Unless Tahlith chooses to search for her parents, it is not of great importance. Nevertheless, thank you for telling me."

Karnwyr nudged Bishop. _Me think she-pup be special. Pup thinks so, too?_

Ever since she'd rescued Bishop, Karnwyr had been referring to Tahlith as 'she-pup.' Bishop knew this meant only one thing: that Karnwyr thought of Tahlith as a part of the 'pack' that was previously just him and Bishop. Bishop shrugged, "She's definitely strong to have made it this far. I'm not sure what you mean by 'special'."

_Other girls pup go with not be special. She-pup be special._ Karnwyr clarified.

Okku made a chuckling noise as Bishop struggled to keep a straight face. "You're imagining things."

"BIIIISSSHHOOOOPPP!!" The ranger jumped as he heard Tahlith calling from the house. "Come inside; it's time for breakfast!"

Bishop stood up and left the shack. "Coming."

Okku and Karnwyr followed him out. Tahlith grinned from her spot at the house window when she saw Okku. "Hey, I hope you didn't have too rough of a night."

"A roof over my head and a shelter from the wind is always a privilege. Thank you." Okku responded.

Tahlith laughed. "Good." She looked at Karnwyr. "Hey, Karnwyr. Want some breakfast?"

Karnwyr grinned as best a wolf could. _Breakfast! She-pup smart._

Bishop rolled his eyes. "Suck up. Keep it up and people are going to think you're domesticated."

Tahlith looked between Bishop and Karnwyr curiously and shrugged. "The one thing I envy druids and rangers for is the ability to talk to animals. Come on in you two. We'll be out soon, Okku."

"I'll be waiting, little one." Okku sat down beneath the window to wait as Bishop and Karnwyr went inside to get breakfast.

Break

A tenday passed all too quickly for the group living in the now crowded Farlong house. Tahlith and Daeghun went out frequently to scout the Mere around West Harbor, often with Okku, Bishop, and Karnwyr in tow. Casavir and Shandra quickly began helping out on the farms around the village in exchange for crops, which was good, seeing as Daeghun's little kitchen was pretty much cleaned out of food after that first morning. Safira, Gann, and Ammon helped out around West Harbor doing various jobs as well. Despite the villagers' initial reactions to the new guests, they quickly made Tahlith's friends welcome.

It was getting late in the evening on the tenth day since their return to West Harbor, and Tahlith and her companions were at the village pub with Daeghun and Georg to get some dinner. People talked, Ammon sulked, Gann flirted, and the villagers kept giving Okku funny looks, but it was all in all a normal evening. It was then that someone spoke up.

"Hey, Tahlith! Let's have a song!"

"Yeah, Tahlith. You're a great singer."

"Come on!"

Tahlith tried to shrink down in her seat, but the crowd refused to let her be. Eventually, Tahlith threw a look of apology at her friends and stood to give the crowd what they wanted. "Alright, alright, but just one."

There were cheers of approval from the crowd as the bartender retrieved a lute for her. Tahlith sat on the edge of the table and spent a moment tuning the instrument to her needs. The crowd fell silent as she began to play and sing.

_Child of the wilderness_

_Born into emptiness_

_Learn to be lonely_

_Learn to find your way in darkness_

_Who will be there for you,_

_comfort and care for you?_

_Learn to be lonely_

_Learn to be your one companion_

_Never dreamed out in the world_

_There are arms to hold you_

_You've always known_

_Your heart was on its own_

_So laugh in your loneliness_

_Child of the wilderness_

_Learn to be lonely_

_Learn how to love life that is lived alone_

_Learn to be lonely_

_life can be lived_

_life can be loved_

_Alone._

The audience was quiet for a moment afterwards before the applause started. Amid the cheers and clapping, Tahlith slid off the table and back into her seat. "Sorry about that."

"Don't be. That was beautiful," Gann told her causing Bishop to shoot him a brief look of loathing.

"You should sing more often," Safira encouraged Tahlith.

Tahlith flushed in embarrassment. "I dunno…"

At that moment, someone began pounding on the door from outside. "Open up, will ya? It's getting chilly out here!"

"No way…" Tahlith muttered as she stood up, recognizing the voice.

As Georg opened the door, an elf and a dwarf hurried inside, the latter barreling through the crowds to reach Tahlith and give her a bone-crushing hug (which is kinda hard to do as a dwarf). "Lass! It's good to see you alive and well!"

"Khelgar! Elanee! Wha- How'd you find me?" Tahlith gasped.

Neither Khelgar nor Elanee noticed the way Bishop immediately withdrew from the table and Ammon Jerro pulled up his hood. Okku nudged Casavir, who quickly motioned to Shandra not to draw attention to herself. Tahlith noticed their actions, but said nothing. Khelgar was busy rambling on about how he and Elanee had found Tahlith, and it was best not to interrupt. "...So then, just as we're about to get worried about the late scouting patrol, it shows up with the tree worshiper in tow. Now, the others were skeptical about letting a she-elf into our mountain so freely, but I managed to convince them she was a friend. I did have to knock a bit of sense into a few of them first..."

"What Khelgar's trying to say," Elanee interrupted, "is that I found out that you were back in the region one day from some of the animals, so I went to find Khelgar. After telling him that you were back, we made haste to return to West Harbor."

"But not without first sending a messenger to Crossroad Keep, of course!" Khelgar announced. "Kana has been keeping the place nice and orderly for you. Nasher wasn't too keen on letting the land go without a knight, but we eventually got him to cave in. We still have a month or two before the buffer period runs out and someone new takes over."

"Crossroad Keep..." The words felt foreign in Tahlith's mouth. She sat back down, as if the name alone put a burden on her. "I'd almost forgotten..."

"Almost forgotten!" Khelgar boomed. "How could you 'almost forget' that you owned your own Keep, lass? What happened to you? For almost a year now we've been waiting for you to come skipping back to the Keep with that grin on your face, just to show Nasher he underestimated you. Now I find that you've been hanging around here for who knows how long…"

"Khelgar, please... keep it down." Tahlith's voice sounded uncertain.

Khelgar ignored her. "What were you planning on doing? Staying here in the swamp forever? You've got a Keep to run and battles to fight! Even if you don't like the job, you've never shirked your job before. Aren't I right, Elanee? Elanee?"

The dwarf looked over to see what was keeping the druid from answering. Elanee was staring over at where Casavir and Shandra sat, looking back at her sheepishly. Shandra gave a small wave. "Uhm... hi?"

"What in the Nine Hells?" Khelgar said in an awed tone. He turned back to Tahlith, who was staring at her feet, looking almost ashamed of herself. "Lass, what's going on here?" His tone turned almost reprimanding, like a parent asking the same question to a disobedient child.

At that particular, highly inconvenient moment, Karnwyr stuck his head out from underneath the table, a large bone in his mouth. Tahlith couldn't help but smile at the wolf's innocent grin. Khelgar, on the other hand, recognized Karnwyr immediately from all those nights on the road with Bishop and got a murderous gleam in his eyes. "Where is he? Where is that murderous backstabber?" He drew his hammer and leapt up onto the table, looking around wildly for Bishop.

Tahlith leapt up out of her chair. She grabbed Khelgar by the front of his shirt and pulled him forward so they were eye to eye, her face impassive. "You will not harm ANYone who I chose to keep in my company, Khelgar!" The noise of the backdoor of the bar slamming shut echoed through the room. Karnwyr leapt up and rushed in that direction, trying to follow his master. Tahlith looked over at Ammon Jerro. "Ammon, do me a favor and bring these two up to speed. I need some fresh air."

"Don't get yourself hurt," Ammon hinted, finally taking his hood back off.

Daeghun made to stand up, but Tahlith shook her head, ignoring Khelgar's most recent round of yelling at the sight of Ammon Jerro. "I'll take Okku, dad. It's easier that way, and there is more of a chance he'll actually come out."

Okku stood up. "I'll meet you outside, little one. That back door won't be big enough."

Tahlith nodded and hurried out, with Karnwyr, who had been stopped by the closed door, following close behind.

Khelgar made to yell something else, but Okku gave him a heavy shove with his snout. "Be quiet, runt, or I will personally silence you."

"And who are you to threaten an Ironfist?" Khelgar challenged.

Okku looked him in the eyes. "I am Okku the bear god, friend and companion of Tahlith. You'd do well to show me some respect." With that, Okku left to find Tahlith.

-Break-

It wasn't until after another session of mixed visions that the Seer came to a decision. Nathyrra was already packing for a scouting trip to the surface; it wouldn't be hard to get her to change course.

The drow assassin stood from searching through her pack when the Seer entered her room. "Seer! What's wrong?" Nathyrra immediately picked up on the older drow woman's distress.

"You need to get moving. Something has changed recently, and Elistraee won't illuminate for me the exact source of the change." The Seer confessed.

Nathyrra looked nervous, "What am I supposed to do?"

The Seer smiled at her sadly. "Do not be afraid. Elistraee may not be giving me the answers I desire, but what she has given me is clear enough. Sit." The Seer motioned for Nathyrra to sit on the bed. When the two of them were sitting side by side on the bed, the Seer sighed. "Do you remember the day that Xukuth last came to Lith Myathar?"

"How could I forget?" Nathyrra answered. "She looked so sad when she was leaving, like she knew she wasn't coming back."

Looking up at the ceiling, the Seer started her story. "That day when she came, Xukuth confessed a number of worries to me. Most I will not repeat here, for I would not betray her trust more than necessary, but one of these fears was about Mephistopheles."

"The devil? Why?" Nathyrra interrupted. "He was bound to her by his True Name in so many ways that I can't imagine he would be able to escape."

"There was one way Xukuth thought of for him to escape." The Seer informed her. "Xukuth understood that the life of an adventurer is dangerous and deadly. If she were to die, the bonds on Mephistopheles would die with her."

Nathyrra gasped. "But couldn't she pass on the bonds to another?"

"That did come up in conversation." The Seer responded. "However, Xukuth felt it was not only her duty to keep him bound, but she was reluctant to put the fate of Toril onto another's shoulders, for more reasons than one. This was not her only reason for fearing death, though." The Seer paused for a moment. "Xukuth told almost no one, but when she came to me, she was a month pregnant."

A gasp came from Nathyrra. "You're kidding! So she and Valen…"

The Seer nodded. "But even Valen didn't know, Nathyrra. You saw how she came into camp, alone with only one sword on her. Even then, Xukuth was putting her plan into action."

"What plan?" Nathyrra asked, completely flabbergasted that her best friend wouldn't tell Valen he was a father.

"Xukuth has friends all over the Sword Coast, Nathyrra. It wasn't easy for her to enact, but it was probably for the best…" The Seer dodged around answering Nathyrra's question.

The assassin caught on. "What is it? Please, she's my best friend!"

The Seer sighed. "Xukuth planned an elaborate way of hiding her child from the world. Even I don't know all the details. It was her plan that she would disappear, keeping herself safe in some way to keep Mephistopheles forever bound, while leaving her child to grow up in peace and continue her bloodline."

Leaning forward, the Seer looked Nathyrra dead in the eyes. "For months now I thought I was seeing Valen in my visions, followed by a strange group of people. I was wrong; it's Xukuth's child I've been seeing. Something is going to happen to Xukuth, I can tell, and her daughter might be the only way to figure things out."

Nathyrra nodded, understanding. "What must I do?"

"Caitham Carnax was left here with me; it only makes sense that Xukuth's other sword was placed somewhere else. Elistraee has shown me images of that second blade, which means it must be important somehow. Also important is the city of Neverwinter. Head in that direction and try to track down both her sword and her child. Both need to be brought here." The Seer put a hand on Nathyrra's shoulder. "And if you should happen to see Valen, tell him he is missed here in Lith Myathar."

-Break-

It was all too easy for Tahlith to blend into the shadows nowadays, especially now that she was back in the Mere. Her shadow-dancing abilities had progressed far, but it was her feeling of separation and aloneness that always helped her to fade away, not her skill at disappearing before people's eyes. Her summoned shadow only enhanced the feeling of loneliness; while Bishop had Karnwyr and Safira had Kaji, all Tahlith had was a silent shadow to follow her when she willed it.

Okku and Karnwyr had agreed to spread out with her to find Bishop, wherever he was hiding. If she had stayed with them, then chances were he wouldn't come out. Tahlith had a feeling that Karnwyr would be the first to find him, so she'd been tracking the wolf from a distance, keeping herself hidden to avoid scaring away her prey.

Sure enough, she heard Karnwyr give a happy bark up ahead. Speeding up, but not lessening her stealth, Tahlith snuck towards the source of the noise. Karnwyr was sitting on the ground looking up into a tree. Tahlith followed his gaze to spot Bishop's boot poking out from behind a branch. _Yup, he's trying to hide._ Tahlith snuck around to the base of the tree and began to find a way up.

Karnwyr gave another bark at Bishop. _Come! Why does pup run like a rabbit from smelly dwarf when there be nothing to fear?_

"You know why, Karnwyr." Bishop quietly answered. "Both the dwarf and the elf would kill me in an instant before anyone could stop them. Not that anyone would..."

"I would." Bishop jumped a bit as Tahlith was suddenly beside him, grinning as she stopped bothering to hide. "Bishop, I know that the others don't understand why I'd bring you back, but that doesn't mean you have to run away so guiltily every time they come. You even left poor Karnwyr to fend for himself this time." The tiefling threw a smile down to the wolf, who looked satisfied.

_She-pup being smart again. Pup needs her intelligence. _Karnwyr laughed at Bishop.

Bishop threw Karnwyr a look that clearly ment 'stay out of this' before returning his attention to Tahlith, who was settling herself down on the branch comfortably, like she expected to be there a while. "Everyone likes the furball better than me anyway. Next time maybe I should just make a pre-emptive strike, just in case."

"See, now you're back to being mean again. Don't go reverting back to your old self just because we're back on the Sword Coast." Tahlith toyed with the worn flute that hung from her hip. She was never far from one instrument or another, even if her tendency to sing and play had decreased since losing the shard in her chest.

"'My old self'? What exactly is that defined as?" Bishop asked.

Tahlith shrugged. "Oh, you know... constantly insulting people and making us wary about daggers in the back... that kind of thing. I like you better when you aren't thinking about what other people think, or when we're alone like this, just talking."

"_Just_ talking?" Bishop repeated. "If I remember correctly, the last time we were really alone there was an undead army on its way, you'd denied the paladin his chance to be un-paladin-y for a change, and I'd just tried my hand at sabotage."

Tahlith chuckled. "Ah, yes. That would have been it. We may have to go find a necromancer just to recreate that moment, it was so nice."

"Hmm... I don't think the paladin would agree to participate, though. He would no doubt die if you turned down his 'undying affection' again." Bishop's voice turned mocking.

Tahlith just laughed. "Hmmm... I have a feeling those 'undying affections' have turned to another unsuspecting victim."

"Who?" Bishop looked surprised. Tahlith whispered it in Bishop's ear. The ranger started laughing. "Are you serious? Those two?"

"All evidence points to it." Tahlith suddenly got a certain gleam in her eye. "Wanna make a wager on it?"

For a few minutes the two happily worked out the finer points of their gamble. When they'd finally finished, the two sat in silence for a while. Tahlith casually started playing her flute. Bishop recognized the tune all too well.

_Flashback_

_You're giving me too many things_

_Lately you're all I need._

_You smiled at me and said,_

_"Don't get me wrong I love you_

_But does that mean I have to meet your father?_

_When we are older you'll understand_

_What I meant when I said 'No,_

_I don't think life is quite that simple.'"_

_When you walk away_

_You don't hear me say "Please,_

_Oh baby, don't go."_

_Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight._

_It's hard to let it go_

_Bishop and Tahlith were sitting on the wall top of Crossroad Keep, where only moments ago Bishop had done something totally unpredictable and out of character by not coming up with some witty remark about how Tahlith had told Casavir no as gently as she could. Tahlith was singing a song she'd sung a few nights ago for the entire camp during her unofficial 'We're-about-to-die-so-let's-party' party._

_The daily things that keep us all busy_

_Are confusing me._

_That's when you came to me and said,_

_"Wish I could prove I love you_

_But does that mean I have to walk on water?_

_When we are older you'll understand_

_It's enough when I say so."_

_And maybe some things are that simple._

_When you walk away_

_You don't hear me say "Please,_

_Oh baby, don't go"_

_Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight._

_It's hard to let it go._

_Tahlith's eyes were closed, her face alit with the subtle magic her music always held. Tonight the magic was for her own benefit, the song for Bishop's as he had asked for the private encore to take both her and his mind off their surroundings and situation. Bishop knew it was too late to fix the gates; Tahlith would just have to face that one later. The ranger looked down at the Keep courtyard where troops stumbled back to bed from the tavern, having spent their probably last night in the company of ale and friends._

_Hold me._

_Whatever lies beyond this morning,_

_Is a little later on._

_Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all._

_Nothing's like before._

_When you walk away_

_You don't hear me say "Please,_

_Oh baby, don't go"_

_Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight._

_It's hard to let it go._

_Hold me._

_Whatever lies beyond this morning,_

_Is a little later on._

_Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all._

_Nothing's like before._

_Hold me._

_Whatever lies beyond this morning,_

_Is a little later on._

_Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all._

_Nothing's like before._

_Tahlith ended the song and set down her lute. She smiled at Bishop. "Well?"_

_"It sounded different from last time." Bishop noted._

_The bard nodded, her smile getting a bit bigger. "Good ears. A slightly calmer, more relaxing version, but the same words and basic melody." She looked up into the sky, trying to avoid looking at the Keep in any way._

_Bishop suddenly cleared his throat. "I wanted to ask you a question."_

_"Oh?" Tahlith looked down from the skies and over to Bishop. For a moment the ranger lost his train of thought, the light of the full moon was reflecting into Tahlith's eyes, startling him with the change it brought to her. It looked like her eyes were able to pierce right through him and read his thoughts. Unable to find the words he wanted, and desperate to avoid the gaze that so affected him, Bishop took the path that instinct lay before him and kissed her full on the lips. Tahlith gave a small noise of surprise that was muffled by his lips, but she soon embraced him, responding to Bishop's kiss happily. When the two pulled away from each other for air, Tahlith looked at Bishop in worry. "What's wrong, Bishop? You're shaking a bit."_

_He realized that she was right and quickly forced himself to stop. "Hmm... maybe that's a good thing." He covered his weakness with words._

_Tahlith looked at Bishop for a moment in silence, then asked, "So what was the kiss for?"_

_"You've been severely short-changed in all this." Bishop explained, a grin coming to his face. "After all that you've worked to do, all you've gotten in reward is a half-ruined Keep and an offer to become even more a lapdog for Nasher. Now that doesn't seem very fair, now does it? As Kana said earlier, the entire Keep is in your debt for your hard work, and I always repay my debts."_

_Bishop briefly kissed Tahlith again on the lips then began to lead her away towards the Keep. Only one last pair of words passed between them as they went._

_"Think we can get into the Keep unnoticed?"_

_"A ranger and a shadow-dancer? I think we'll manage."_

Bishop was broken out of his thoughts by Okku's voice below. "The elf ranger and the druid are looking for you two, you know. Any longer out here and they might have the entire group after you."

Tahlith let the final note of the song fade away. "Thanks Okku. Let them know we're on our way, will you?"

As the bear god padded off, Tahlith grinned at Bishop. "Ready to go face the wrath of a usually-drunk dwarf?"

Bishop grinned back. "A ranger and a shadowdancer? I think we'll manage."

Break

Ellanne and Daeghun stood on the edge of the forest, waiting for Tahlith to return with Bishop. The ranger's hand kept straying to his bow, though he always caught himself before drawing it. Ellanne smiled kindly at him. "You're worried about her being alone with Bishop, aren't you?"

Daeghun gave a small nod. "I don't trust that man, no matter what Tahlith says about him."

"It does seem odd that, after he betrayed her, Tahlith would go out of her way to save him." Ellanne commented. "I would have expected her to try and save Casavir..."

"The paladin is too strict," Daeghun interrupted. "He is like a mountain in his faith. Tahlith is like the wind; while there is wind around a mountain top, it would much rather play in the leaves of the trees."

Ellanne smiled in amusement. "Nice analogy. And where does that Gann fellow fit in?"

Daeghun rolled his eyes. "He's a second wind who is trying to sweep away the first, but has found itself too weak."

This time Ellanne started laughing.

"What's all the laughing about?" Tahlith was coming out of the woods with Okku, Bishop, and Karnwyr following.

Ellanne smiled at Tahlith. The tiefling had changed in some way, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. "Just talking with your father about a few things. I see you found Bishop." The druid gave a polite nod of acceptance to the human ranger.

Tahlith hurried forward and gave Ellanne a huge hug. "It's so great to see you, Ellanne!" She exclaimed. "I wish you'd been there in Rashemen with me. There were all these animals and spirits... I was almost tempted to go become a ranger just to hear what they were saying to each other. Then again... all the important ones talked in Common, so it wasn't too bad." She released Ellanne and grinned at Okku, like they were sharing a private joke.

Daeghun stepped forward. "We need to get back. Casavir was finishing up calming Khelgar down when we left, and it's best we don't leave him to stew in his thoughts for too long."

"So he's calmed down a bit, then?" Tahlith breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. I didn't want to have to deal with that." As they started back towards West Harbor, Tahlith struck up another conversation with Ellanne. "Ammon told me what he'd seen after the battle when I found him. He'd told me that you'd been seriously injured; I'm glad to see that you're alright."

"I was in a very bad situation," Ellanne admitted. "Khelgar, Neeshka, and Sand managed to get out alright, and the Construct somehow managed to escape with only one arm broken. While Sand and Neeshka went off to get help, Khelgar and the Construct worked on freeing everyone. Grobnar had to be resurrected, I had to be healed numerous times, and Zhaeve was nowhere to be seen, but we got out alright otherwise. Casavir, as you obviously know, died and was beyond our aid, and..." She glanced back at Bishop then whispered to Tahlith, "We found _him_ under a pile of rubble. Not enough to resurrect, though we wouldn't have anyway..."

"I get the point," Tahlith muttered, her voice suddenly going cold.

Ellanne nodded and continued back at her previous volume. "The Greycloaks and a couple clerics got to us rather quickly with potions and the like. Soon enough we made it back to the Keep. Everyone healed up quickly. We received a message at one point from Zhaeve saying she was safe and that she wished us all well, despite her inability to return to the Keep at that moment. Apparently her cousin wanted help with something."

"Figures. We're gonna need a new cleric, then." Tahlith shook her head. "Why is it that I can't keep a decent cleric for more than one adventure?"

"At least we've got plenty of experience with healing packs and potions," Ellanne pointed out.

Tahlith rolled her eyes. "Oh, sure... Settle for less when we could have a cleric. At least we've got Casavir back now to help, even if he does get a bit preachy at times."

The two laughed in agreement and said no more on the matter as they headed back inside the tavern.

Khelgar was sitting in Bishop's spot, and he did not fail to glare at Bishop as the man followed Tahlith inside.

Tahlith noticed the glare and promptly teased the dwarven monk. "Come on, Khelgar. I'd hate for this to cause an end to our friendship."

Khelgar sighed, "Not like I can do anything about it anyways." He drained his mug and set it back down. "So, when are we leaving for Crossroads Keep?"

Tahlith immediately eyed the door and looked about ready to bolt. Okku nudged her leg. "Not this time, little one. You'll have to face this sooner or later."

The tiefling looked guiltily at everyone, then moaned, "You aren't really going to make me go back there, are you? Kana will have a field day and Nasher will just end up throwing more 'gifts' at me!"

_**Songs are: Learn to be Lonely from the Phantom of the Opera and Utada Hikaru's Simple and Clean. I own the rights to neither song.**_


	6. Tension

Two days after the incident at the bar, Tahlith rose early to pack. They had finally talked her into returning to Crossroads Keep, so Tahlith immediately had set down a couple of rules: no Bishop-bashing, no Ammon-bashing, and keep up the pace or else. Tahlith had also set their start time ridiculously early in the morning compared to usual, but she knew the others were getting lazy just sitting around West Harbor. _The sooner we're out of here the better, especially if there are going to still be these awkward silences between us all._ There had definitely been an increase in hostility between factions of the group. Now that there was no King of Shadows or spirit-eater curse to destroy, it was hard to keep people from arguing or getting off-topic. People were being divided in so many ways that even Tahlith, someone who normally called herself a good judge of these things, was having trouble keeping count.

As Tahlith picked up her newly-packed bag and adjusted the new basic leather tunic that Daeghun had provided her with (the previous one having been lost in the journey to Rashemen), Ellanne stirred and nudged Safira. The wizard woke up and did the same to Shandra, then got up to get ready to go. No one wanted to be left behind; Tahlith was in a mood, and they all knew what that meant: don't be late.

Tahlith went downstairs to find that Bishop and Ammon were already up and nearly ready to go. Casavir looked to be about halfway through his morning routine, and both Gann and Khelgar were still asleep. Bishop grinned as he watched Tahlith. The bard grabbed a roll of bread off the counter for breakfast, kicked Gann in the side to wake him, and then stuck an apple in Khelgar's open mouth to force him awake. The dwarf snorted and sat up suddenly, surprised to find his breakfast already in his mouth. Gann, on the other hand, rolled over and went back to sleep. Tahlith rolled her eyes and motioned to Bishop and Ammon, as if to say ''Have fun getting him up.'' Bishop looked like he intended to.

With her breakfast and pack in hand, Tahlith went outside to check on Okku. She found the bear god sitting next to Daeghun, who had a pack at his feet. Tahlith looked at him curiously. "What's the pack for? Going somewhere?"

Daeghun nodded. "The Mere has changed since you last were here. If it is alright with you, I will accompany you to your Keep to make sure you are safe. Besides, they might need my services as a scout again."

The elf found himself suddenly engulfed in a huge hug from Tahlith. "Thank you!" She exclaimed. The idea that Daeghun was coming with them was worth a hundred words of caution and praise from him. "You don't know how much this means to me."

Daeghun looked a bit surprised at her reaction, but hugged her back. "I'm just glad to have you back."

After a moment, Okku gave a small noise to get their attention. "Should we call the others out?"

Tahlith released her foster-father and got the largest smile on her face that anyone had seen in a while. "Oh, this is gonna be good. Gann only got up two minutes or so ago."

Taking a deep breath, Tahlith gave a shrill whistle directed towards the house, then called out "Come on, guys! Let's get moving!"

With a good deal of grumbling, the inhabitants of the Farlong house piled out onto the front yard, breakfasts in their hands and their packs in various states of disarray. Gann was in the rear, sticking a hat over his head to hide his messy hair, which was surprisingly wet. He kept glaring at Bishop and Ammon, so Tahlith made a mental note to thank them later.

As soon as everyone was ready, Tahlith grinned. "Good morning, everyone. Did you all sleep well?"

Khelgar looked about ready to say something vulgar, but Tahlith was two steps ahead of him, pulling a canteen full of cider out and tossing it to him as a peace offering. The dwarf sniffed it and grinned at the tiefling.

"Okay, so here's the plan," Tahlith told them. "Daeghun is coming with us, an unexpected bonus, so that means our group is even larger than we expected. This means that if we're caught in a fight, we'll be pretty well off," (Bishop gave a laugh at this) "so no one worry too much about that. It also means watches are going to be short, and some of us will get to sleep through the night each time we make camp." (Gann looked very happy about this.) "It does mean, however, that we need to make sure we have everyone together when moving out, though. I don't want anyone getting lost in the shuffle."

Shandra spoke up. "Are we going straight through to the Keep, or are we going to take any side trips to places like Fort Locke?"

Tahlith's eyes lit up. "Yes! That reminds me…"

It wasn't too often that anyone actually _saw_ Tahlith summoning up her shadow using her shadowdancer abilities. Usually it just appeared next to them in the middle of battle, or it was dark and no one could see it anyway. This time, though, in the half-light of the rising sun, it looked downright eerie to see the summoning occur. It was like the shadows were converging upon her for a moment before Tahlith's very shadow split in two and separated. One stayed attached to Tahlith, slightly dimmer than before, while the other was strengthened by the converging shadows and stood up. Tahlith smiled at her summon and pulled a note out of her bag. "I need you to take this note to Crossroads Keep. Hand it over only to Neeshka, Sand, or any other of my former companions. Do not give it to Kana. I trust you to get there well before we do, got it?"

The shadow nodded and took the note before slipping off into the woods. Casavir frowned, "How can it get there before us?"

Tahlith smiled. "Well, for one, we have to sleep. And for another, those shadows move like the wind when inside other shadows, like those of the wood. The note will slow it down a bit, but it should be fine."

Her companions all looked at her like she was the tiniest bit nuts, but Tahlith didn't care. Grabbing up her pack, she announced, "Alright, people! Time to move out!"

-Break-

For Sand, the fact that he was once again spending the evening alone was a good thing. Sand never enjoyed the interruptions that frequently occurred at the Keep, especially because they most often came from Aldanon and his only half comprehensible ramblings. Sand had to admit, though, the Keep's library was not only better than the public ones in Neverwinter, partially due to his own efforts and influences, but it was also easier to access. In Neverwinter, it was near impossible for Sand to find and check out a book he wanted, due to those Academy wizards taking all the good books. Here in the Keep, however, Sand had first dibs. After the Knight Captain, of course.

However, no one had seen or heard from Tahlith since those three creatures had carried her off during the cave-in at the King of Shadows's lair. Things at the Keep were balancing on thin ice without her. Kana had been able to, with Nevalle's help, postpone the naming of a new Knight Captain of Crossroads Keep for a year to give Tahlith a chance to come back. Nevalle was holding the fort (literally, in some ways) until that time. There were lizardling troubles (the scaly beasts had become less open to cooperation after Tahlith went missing), reconstruction efforts (the entire Gate operating mechanism had needed to be replaced thanks to Bishop), and prejudice-based disputes to deal with (the drow merchant had eventually given up on being accepted and left). It seemed like everything Tahlith had made look easy had suddenly become nearly impossible to handle.

If anyone had gone up to Sand and asked him if he missed the Knight Captain, he would have answered no. After all, he would go on to explain, he had been friends with Tahlith the bard who had charmed her way into impressing him on that first day they'd met, not with the 'Knight Captain' Tahlith became every time the duties of owning a Keep of Neverwinter were thrust to her foremost attention. He'd merely accepted her then, knowing that sooner or later Tahlith would find time to be herself. Maybe, Sand often pondered alone, that was why he had always done so much of the work for her, just so that she would have more time to be herself.

On this particular evening, Tahlith's name once again popped into Sand's head, causing him to stop reading his book. He hadn't thought about her once that day, a peculiar occurrence, since Neeshka, Grobnar, and Bevil were all nearly obsessed with trying to find her and often asked for Sand's help. Not that Sand didn't want her back; knowing Tahlith, though, she'd come back on her own.

The name didn't stay in Sand's head for long, because an unusual shuffling noise drew his attention to a particularly dark corner of the room. Presuming it was the most likely culprit due to the faintest of faint smell of brimstone, Sand sighed, "Neeshka, really, if you want to talk to me, you don't have to sneak up on me. Surely by now you realize that my superior senses are more than a match for your stealth skills."

There was no noise from the corner behind him, other than a bit more shuffling from the intruder. This made Sand a bit annoyed. "Just waiting for me to go back to my reading is not going to work, Neeshka. I am fully aware now that you are in the room, and I'm not going to fall for any of your tricks, so get out of the corner and tell me why you are here."

If anything, the shuffling noise only got louder. Sand sighed again, taking a deep breath in the process. This time, it was not only the smell of brimstone that assaulted his super-sensitive nose. The scent of woodlands and marshes was mixed in with the brimstone, which gave the overall composition of the scent an interesting, almost contradictory point. Such a scent Sand could have attributed to Neeshka if she'd spent a week in the Mere, but seeing as this was not the case, only one other person who could and would have that scent came to mind. An added undertones of extra-planar travel was there too, a point that confused Sand a bit, but did not deter him from turning around in his chair, fully expecting to see Tahlith standing behind him.

It wasn't Tahlith, but the sight of the shadow not only gave Sand a small hope that the Knight Captain was not lost, but also explained the extra-planar undertones. It wasn't the strongest of shadows, Sand noticed, and it lacked a definite body shape, unlike Tahlith's usual shadow sendings, but the scent coming from it confirmed that it was definitely one of Tahlith's. _She probably was casting in a hurry, or didn't feel like exerting the energy on this particular summoning._ Usually, Tahlith would give her shadows a form of some sort, giving each one more personality to its appearance than most people bothered with. Sand had to admit, the appearances did seem to make the shadows a tad bit less intimidating, but all the more impressive, especially in battle.

The shadow before him stuck a hand into its own torso, about where its stomach would have been, and pulled out a scroll. Sand immediately recognized the seal on it as Tahlith's and stuck out his hand to take the document. As he grabbed a hold of the scroll, however, the shadow's 'arm' shifted, sending some of its own self out over Sand's arm. Sand instinctively recoiled, but then remembered what Tahlith had once told him about summoned shadows.

_They had stopped to make camp after a long day of adventuring. Earlier that day, Tahlith had used her shadowdancer powers for the first time in battle, which had thoroughly impressed everyone in the group, whether they'd said so or not. Tahlith's shadow friend had yet to return to its home, so it was following Tahlith everywhere, as usual. However, it kept stopping whenever it passed one of the members of the party to look at them. It would then turn back to Tahlith, cock its head to the side as if asking a question, then resume following her. When it did this regarding Shandra, the former farm girl finally spoke up. "Tahlith, your shadow here is giving me the creeps. Why does it keep looking at us so weirdly?"_

_Tahlith had laughed in response, that beautifully clear laugh that everyone would miss so much when she was gone. "It's just curious as to what you taste like."_

"_Taste like?" Shandra looked horrified. "It… it won't eat anyone, will it?" The other members of the party were sharing similar looks of shock and horror._

_Again, their tiefling leader laughed. "No, no. Shadows don't actually eat… they just like to taste people's… I guess you'd say auras. Just watch!" Tahlith gave a small whistling noise and the shadow immediately was at her side. Murmuring in a strange language, Tahlith encouraged the shadow as she held out her hand for it to 'taste.' The shadow took the hand, its form quickly moving like liquid over her hand and arm to cover it. After a moment or two, the shadow withdrew, then took a shape very similar to Tahlith's, as if in recognition of whom it had just 'tasted.' Tahlith grinned at Shandra. "See? No harm done. It's just curious, you know?"_

Tahlith's shadows had 'tasted' Sand before, but this one seemed to be concentrating on it more than usual. Abruptly it stopped and retreated, leaving the scroll in Sand's hand. Immediately the shadow took on Sand's shape before settling into the corner, as if waiting. _Probably wants a response…_ Sand thought as he turned away from the shadow to read the message.

_Dear Neeshka, Sand, Grobnar, and Construct (not that he'll be reading this),_

_Greetings from swampy West Harbor! Yes, I'm back in this lovely town; don't go questioning how just yet because it's a LONG story. Khelgar and Ellanne found me a few days ago and, under threat of being dragged the entire way, was told I'd better come back to Crossroads Keep. So, I'm headed towards the great Keep (hope it's still standing!)._

_DON'T TELL KANA OR ANYONE! Let me have my fun and make an entrance. However, if you want to see me before I have the chance to get on your nerves, make your way to Fort Locke. We're making our way there first. Oh, and please bring me some of my things. I'm not sure if you located my pack from the ruins, but it certainly didn't come to Rashemen with me and I miss some of my items._

_Say hi to Kistrel for me!_

_Yours truly,_

_Tahlith Auvreaneldth_

_Bard, Red Dragon Disciple, and Shadow-dancer_

Just seeing Tahlith's signature was enough to make the normally reserved wizard grin. Trying to compose himself, he grabbed a piece of parchment and wrote hurriedly upon it.

_Tahlith-_

_I'll inform the others this letter was addressed to of your travel plans and we'll meet you at Fort Locke._

_Sincerely,_

_Sand_

Turning back to the shadow, which still was keeping his appearance, Sand handed it the note. The shadow put its hand onto the note and absorbed it into the shadow-stuff it was comprised of. The shadow bowed once before walking away through a wall.

It took Sand a moment to get himself to think straight. Even when he was fully composed, it took all of Sand's self control not to run all the way to find Neeshka.

-Break-

Swords clashed. Tahlith grinned. "Nice to see death hasn't ruined your footwork."

Bishop rolled his eyes. "Fortunately, your previous eating habits haven't ruined yours either." He moved to attack again as Tahlith laughed and parried.

36 hours into their trip, the huge adventuring party stopped for the second night in a clearing in the Mere. Tahlith had immediately deemed it the perfect sparring time. Gann had already gone up against Safiya, staff against speak, in a good-humored way. Khelgar and Casavir had gone next, and both of them were now alert as they watched Tahlith going against Bishop. Safiya sat down next to them. "Why is it that Tahlith loves sparring so much?"

"Who doesn't?" Khelgar laughed. "Getting to try your fists against another… or blades, as the case may be… it's the thrill of the challenge!"

Casavir supplemented Khelgar's answer with his own. "She sees it as training and a way to learn what we all know. By this point, she could probably tell you each of our combat moves and how to counter them."

"So it isn't just magics of all sorts that she sticks her nose into," Gann interjected. "A bard of all trades indeed."

They returned to watching the fight. Bishop was forcing Tahlith back, but she looked unconcerned. Bishop grinned at her. "Ready to give up yet?"

Tahlith grinned back. "Since when have I ever given up?" In an instant she leapt over him, landing steady on her feet, and half-turned just in time to block Bishop's swords coming at her side. The clang reverberated around the clearing.

Shandra winced from where she was stirring the cookpot, which was filled with that evening's dinner. "I really wish they wouldn't spar with real weapons."

Ellanne just shook her head. "Knowing Tahlith, she wouldn't have it any other way. Remember how closely the Sword of Gith is tied to her?"

"Not so much anymore…" Ammon commented. He was sitting near the two women, taking advantage of Casavir's distraction to spend time near his granddaughter. "The blade is whole again, and Tahlith no longer has the shard in her chest. Before, she was a part of the blade; now the blade merely has accepted her as its owner."

"Does it really make that much of a difference?" Shandra asked.

Ammon nodded. "And she knows it too."

Bishop tried to sweep Tahlith's legs from underneath her, only to find her leaping over his leg. Her laugh sounded out around the clearing, only to be cut off short. Everyone was on their feet in an instant; Bishop had rammed into Tahlith while she was still in mid-air to beat her. Now Tahlith was sprawled out on the ground, trying to catch the wind that had been knocked out of her. Daeghun was at her side in an instant. Bishop, realizing his mistake, stayed put, all too aware of Casavir's murderous gaze on him. Ammon Jerro got up and walked over to Bishop, both to keep him from slipping off and to keep the others from trying to kill the ranger.

Tahlith caught her breath and began laughing breathlessly. "Well, you certainly won that round, Bishop. Good job. I'll have to keep that move in mind."

Daeghun breathed a small sigh of relief. Tahlith got to her feet and walked over to Bishop. Grinning, she ruffled his hair, like she would Karnwyr's. "Don't look so worried. Yeesh, if I can face down gods, I think I can handle a blow like that."

It became clear in an instant that the statement was not so much addressed to Bishop, but to everyone around them. Bishop smiled a bit and grabbed Tahlith's wrist, stopping it from messing with his hair. "Hmm… what does it mean if I beat someone who challenged a god's actions?"

"It means that you are either very lucky or a damn good fighter," Tahlith replied, not missing the way Casavir's eyes narrowed, "or possibly both. But seeing as you can't even handle me messing with your hair, I'd say the first one."

Bishop released her hand, grinning. "Oh, so is that it?" He would have made a move to kiss her right then, just to spite everyone who was watching, except someone just had to interrupt them.

"Dinner's ready, everyone!" Shandra called out, obviously trying to end the tension. Tahlith laughed, gave Bishop's hair one more ruffle for good measure, and sprinted over to claim a seat next to Shandra. As everyone else slowly made their way over to the fire and food, Bishop just sighed and watched.

Karnwyr padded over to his side. _Pup feel like lone wolf again. Why not others let she-pup choose own mate? She-pup be alpha-wolf, right?_

Karnwyr's comments struck Bishop as both overly perceptive and a bit too wolfish at the same time. Bishop sighed and muttered his reply. "Tahlith may lead, but even she has to keep her pack's favor to stay in command. Not all packs take in dangerous outsiders."

_Pup be stupid before, but pup growing._ Karnwyr nudged Bishop's leg._ Pup talk to alpha-male. He be smart. He know what to do._

" 'Alpha-male'?" Who would that be? Casavir?" Bishop asked.

Karnwyr shook his head and walked off. Bishop watched him go, then frowned as he saw Karnwyr stand next to Daeghun. The elf was watching Tahlith from a short distance away, unnoticed by the eating company. As Karnwyr sat beside him, Daegun scratched him behind the ears. Karnwyr wagged his tail happily and looked back at Bishop. _Alpha-male._


	7. Seeing Things

Nathyrra paused, waiting for the pedestrians to move before darting across the street. Even though dark elves were now accepted by the surfacers in Waterdeep, it was always safer at night to sneak around, just to avoid startling anyone.

Finally making it to the door she was trying to reach, Nathyrra knocked three times. The door was opened by a human wizard who looked all too surprised to see a drow on his doorstep. "Nathyrra! I wasn't expecting you…"

"Sobrey…" Nathyrra gave a smile as a way of greeting him, then invited herself inside, too eager to get off the street to be polite at the moment.

As she set down her pack, Sobrey closed the door and watched her cautiously. "I wasn't expecting you…" He repeated.

"Yes, I'm sorry to come by so suddenly," Nathyrra replied, "but I need your help. The Seer has sent me on a mission, and I need help scrying my target before I head out..."

"Ah, say no more." Sobrey moved off to get his scrying basin. "No offence to those who have the divine gift of foresight, but there really is nothing like a good old arcane scrying session, is there?"

As he got together his supplies, Nathyrra looked around the room. She'd barely been on the surface for fifteen minutes, having spent just enough time to thank Durnan for pulling her up the well before leaving the Yawning Portal. _I probably scared him half to death in my haste to get out of there,_ she thought.

Finally, Sobrey set down a liquid filled basin before her. "Here you go. I trust you know what to do from here."

She did, of course, being a wizard herself. Focusing on the Weave, Nathyrra said the required spell, letting the mundane task calm her. Images began to show to her through the basin as she focused her mind on each of them in turn.

_The city of Neverwinter lay peacefully in the night hours. Different locations flashed before her, one by one, as Nathyrra searched for any clues of Xukuth's location. Directly trying to scry the woman had always been futile, so Nathyrra didn't even bother trying that path yet. Eventually she gave up and turned to the missing sword. A pile of rubble flashed before her briefly, before switching to the interior of a castle. Figuring the castle must be the one she had seen the exterior of while scrying Neverwinter, Nathyrra switched to her last target: Valen Shadowbreath._

_Immediately his image leapt to the surface of the basin. The tiefling looked haggard and worn, like he'd spent little time bothering with personal hygiene and the basic necessity of sleep. Nathyrra's heart pained at the thought of her friend like this. Valen was running through a forest she didn't recognize, but that meant little; Nathyrra didn't know the surface like Valen now did. As the spell faded, Nathyrra got one last good look at Valen's face. The tiefling's eyes were a crimson red._

-Break-

Bishop would never have given up sleep just to talk to Daeghun, but Karnwyr would lick Bishop's face or ear every time the ranger tried to fall asleep. Daeghun had third watch, so Bishop lay awake waiting for Casavir and Khelgar's shifts to be over, fuming silently that his animal companion had turned on him like this.

Finally, Daeghun got up to take his turn and Khelgar went back to his bedroll, falling promptly asleep. Bishop listened to the dwarf's breathing until the snoring started, which was about when Karnwyr stood up and trotted over to Daeghun. Bishop sat up to watch the wolf sit down comfortably at Daeghun's side. The elf patted Karnwyr on the head silently, and then turned his attention to Bishop. "You have a good companion here. He makes me wish mine were still around."

"What happened to yours?" Bishop asked, getting up. He walked over to where Daeghun sat and plopped himself down. _Might as well get comfortable. The elf has obviously been expecting this._

"She died saving my wife's life on one of our last adventures before retiring to West Harbor," Daeghun replied calmly.

"She?" Bishop looked surprised.

"My animal companion was a female barn owl named Duena. We were ambushed by orcs. Usually it would not have been an issue, but Shayla was already wounded in the shoulder and couldn't fight properly. One of the last orcs shot an arrow at her before I could stop it. Duena saved Shayla when I could not, but sacrificed herself in the process." The elf sighed at the memory of his lost companion. "There was nothing that could be done. Duena was dead before she hit the ground."

Bishop sat in silence for a moment, just petting Karnwyr on the head. _What would it be like, I wonder, to loose Karnwyr…_ Pushing the thought out of his mind, Bishop turned back to the issue that had forced him into this conversation in the first place. "None of the others here trust me."

"No, they don't," Daeghun replied, his voice loosing its softness. "Neither do I fully, for that matter."

"So why… why do you let me stay?" Bishop asked. He had been on the verge of asking 'why do you let me so near your daughter,' but figured that would have been a bad move.

"Because I trust Tahlith's judgment," Daeghun stated simply. "I have talked to Okku and Karnwyr; both of them vouch for you as well. So long as they stay on your side, I will tolerate your presence."

They sat in silence again for a while. Bishop finally sighed. "Tahlith should never have bothered bringing me back. I –"

"What's done is done," Daeghun interrupted. "It does not matter anymore what should have been done. What matters is what you plan to do now. Will you repay my daughter's kindness the way you did before by betraying her trust? Or will you make a new path for yourself?"

Bishop thought about it for a moment. His own words came back to haunt him. "_As Kana said earlier, the entire Keep is in your debt for your hard work, and I always repay my debts." _A shudder went through him. "How am I supposed to pick a new path? I'm probably a wanted criminal all over the Sword Coast by now?"

Daeghun simply replied, "You will have to figure out that one on your own."

-Break-

A pale figure walked across the small attic space above the Neverwinter Temple of Tyr to the sole window and looked outside. From there she could see the majority of the Merchant's Quarter. _So many people… and so much I want to do to help… _For the past twenty years or so, she had been living in this attic, not minding the ever changing temperatures and lack of space. So long as it was hidden, she was content.

Walking back over to the prayer corner she had established shortly after her arrival, she knelt down before a small statue of Tyr and began to pray._ Tyr, I thank you again for this second chance at walking in your service. Help me to serve you as you see best._

Even as the last words finished echoing through her mind, a flood of images assailed her.

_A sword, shimmering with light, kept switching aura colors between red and white._

_A woman wearing a feathered hat was standing over a red-haired tiefling, watching him curiously. The tiefling was breathing heavily, like he'd been in a fight._

_A fiery devil, laughing maniacally, was standing in an ice-filled cavern, clearly happy about something._

_Words echoed through her head: "Find Tinureth Aleanrretyn."_

Aribeth needed no further heeding from Tyr. Picking up her ethereal blade from its spot on a shelf, she gave it an experimental swing. _The hero of Neverwinter is needed, and I will not fail to find her._

-Break-

It had only been five days since they had gotten Tahlith's letter, and already Sand, Neeshka, Grobnar, and the Construct were all sick of each other. Well, not so much Grobnar and his pet blade golem, but the gnome was a bit too oblivious to Neeshka and Sand's glares to notice their irritation with him. "…so you see, it only makes sense that Tahlith would survive seeing as she was so well liked by the Wendersnaven."

"Uhm, Grobnar?" Neeshka dared to interject.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Neeshka. Did you not understand something? I could go over it again…"

"NO!" Neeshka cleared her throat to cover her minor outburst. "It's just that we're getting close, and it would be a good idea not to draw attention to ourselves if we want Tahlith to go unnoticed when we find her."

"I understand perfectly… You know, this reminds me of the time my Uncle Albert faked his own death in order to avoid the tax collectors…"

Sand rolled his eyes as Grobnar went off on another rambling tangent. "Perhaps the best plan would be to use a silencing spell on him."

Neeshka snickered, but didn't comment. The trio plus the Construct walked up the last hill and into Forte Locke, trying not to draw attention to themselves. With Grobnar's mouth running a mile a minute, this was a hard feat to accomplish, but since most of the people inhabiting the rebuilt fort had never actually seen them in person, only knowing their names from the tales of the Knight Captain's battle with the King of Shadows, they managed.

Eventually, Neeshka tapped Sand on the shoulder and indicated a dark corner of the fort. Standing there was a hooded figure, his outfit all to recognizable. "Ammon Jerro," Neeshka whispered to her traveling companions. Grobnar was actually quiet for once as they went over to greet the warlock.

Ammon looked up as they got close. From this distance, they could clearly see the summoned shadow accompanying him. When Sand, Grobnar, and Neeshka stopped walking, the shadow stood apart from Ammon and, one by one, took on each of their appearances, as if greeting them. Neeshka grinned. "It's been a while since I've seen a shadow do that."

"I was beginning to think you weren't coming," Ammon commented. "You have decent timing, though. I was about to head back and switch out with Ellanne again."

"Yes, well, trying to get anywhere with a gnome bard is enough of a challenge in and of itself without worrying about timeliness," Sand retorted. "So, if we want to avoid making the purpose of our trip wait any longer, we might want to keep moving."

Ammon's eyes narrowed at Sand's remark, but he said nothing to the elf, instead turning to the shadow, which was now trying to mimic the Construct's appearance. "Go warn Tahlith."

The shadow copied Ammon's appearance before disappearing. Ammon motioned for the others to follow him, then began walking towards the gate. Once outside Fort Locke, Ammon took them down the road until they reached the beginning of the forest. A small welcoming party waited there. Tahlith was sitting up in a tree and waved at her approaching companions. "Hey! We thought you would never make it!"

"Tahl!" Neeshka ran the rest of the way. Tahlith leapt down from the tree and hugged her fellow tiefling. Neeshka immediately was doing a fair imitation of Grobnar on a rant. "Tahlith, we missed you so much! When you didn't turn up at the ruins, everyone was so sure you'd died, but a couple of us kept looking and now here we are and you're BACK!"

Tahlith laughed. "It's great to see you too, Neeshka."

Grobnar uncharacteristically only had a few words to say. "Oh dear, we really are going to have to sit down and write everything down, aren't we?"

This caused another grin from Tahlith. "You have no idea, Grobnar." She looked up at the Construct, remembering the two golems she'd made over the course of her travels. "Hey, tin-can. You have a couple of cousins out in Rashemen now, though one of them didn't make it very far."

As usual, the Construct said nothing.

Sand cleared his throat. "My dear girl, you seem to have picked up some new companions, and rather interesting ones at that."

Tahlith finally managed to extricate herself from Neeshka's grasp and walked over to Sand, grinning. "Don't worry, Sand, I didn't manage to find a lawyer quite as good as you…" She gave the elf a hug, much to his surprise and to Neeshka's amusement.

"While I appreciate the sentiment, the hug of affection is not necessary." Sand looked like he was feeling just a bit awkward.

Tahlith released the reserved wizard and grinned. "Well, then, I'll just get on with the introductions." She motioned to the three other members of the welcoming party. "First off, we have Safiya. She's the nicest, least-stereotypical Red Wizard I've ever met, and best of all, she lacks Sand's cleanliness obsession!"

Neeshka burst out laughing, and Sand looked a bit peeved. Ammon Jerro cracked a smile for a moment, but it disappeared before anyone could see it. Safiya just tried to control her smile so as not to embarrass Sand any further.

"Next," Tahlith continued, "is Gannayev-of-Dreams, or Gann for short. He's the one who mimics Sand in appearance issues. Oh, and he's a spirit-shaman, which is really cool."

Gann made a bow to the three arrivals. "Tahlith's introduction is as flattering as always, but I hope you will not see fit to hold it against me."

Tahlith laughed. "I just tell it like it is, Gann." She motioned to the last person. "And, saving the best for last, we have Okku, who is a bear spirit god thingy…"

"Oh, well done. Very eloquent. I can really see how you're giving an accurate description here…" Gann mocked her.

Tahlith walked over and gave Gann a whack on the head. "Oh, behave yourself. Okku knows what I mean, right Okku?"

Okku gave a rumble of amusement, "While I am most definitely not a 'thingy,' your description will suffice, little one. I've never been one for introductions."

"So, Tahlith, what's been keeping you so long?" Neeshka asked.

Tahlith sighed. "Well, here we go again with the story telling." She began to give an abridged version of the same tale she'd told Daeghun, going over her trip quickly. Her audience gasped and laughed in all the right places, which made it ten times better, but once again, when she reached her decision to rescue Bishop, Tahlith found it hard to continue. "Okay, think of one person, each of you, who you would want back in your life, for whatever reason. Someone dead who you miss dearly."

Sand blushed a bit, which was very odd for him, and politely refused to share 'such personal information.' Neeshka shrugged and said that she already had gotten her person back (earning her another hug from Tahlith). It was Grobnar, however, who came up with the answer Tahlith was waiting for. "Well I certainly miss Shandra enough that I would consider picking her…"

"Aw… Grobnar!" Shandra's voice came out of the forest, followed by a chorus of shushing noises.

"Shandra?" Neeshka asked cautiously.

A sheepish looking Shandra stepped out of the forest. "Sorry, Tahlith, I couldn't help it."

Tahlith shook her head. "It's alright. Come on out, the rest of you."

Daeghun, Ellanne, and Khelgar all came out of the forest without hesitation and went to stand by Ammon off to the side. Casavir came out after them, immediately causing Neeshka to gasp, Grobnar to cheer, and Sand's jaw to hit the ground. "Wha- how did this…?" The normally eloquent wizard was speechless.

Tahlith counted heads, then sighed. "Oh come on…" She stalked off into the forest and came back a few seconds later, aided by Karnwyr in dragging Bishop out of his hiding spot. "Come on, you cowardly ranger. They won't bite."

They didn't bite, but Neeshka did hiss and Sand immediately said, "Tahlith, I suggest you get away from him before my fireball hits you both."

"Oh, stop it, Sand. You sound like Qara. Speaking of her, though, she sends her regards, but stayed behind to help in the Crusades." Tahlith kept a hand on Bishop's shoulder to keep him from running.

Grobnar smiled at the betraying ranger. "Hello, Sir Bishop. I wasn't expecting to see you again. Then again, I wasn't expecting to see any of you again when that building was collapsing, so I suppose it's to be expected…"

"Thanks, I guess," Bishop replied when Tahlith nudged him.

After a few more minutes of explaining, Sand, Grobnar, and Neeshka were all brought up to speed and, like Khelgar and Ellanne, were a bit more accepting of Bishop's return. Tahlith reassured Sand one last time that Qara was not going to hunt him down before sighing. "Well, I guess that's about it. Anyone up for food? Dinner's on the fire back at camp."

The now even larger company headed into the woods to the campsite. Finally all of the companions from Tahlith's first adventure, minus Qara and Zhjaeve, were together again.


End file.
